You won't regret it
by Onyx Lexa
Summary: What if Sakura actually agreed to go on a date with Naruto when they were in the academy? Read to find out what happens. NaruSaku (This is my first fanfiction btw!)


**You won't regret it…**

It was just another regular day at the academy. All the students were running around, playing with each other. The girls were all seated in the classroom gathering all their latest gossip. All the girls except a certain pearl eyed, shy brunette who wasn't interested in gossip. The only lonely kid was sitting on a swing under a three looking at the ground, kicking a couple of rocks under his feet. Alone. Just like he always was. That boy is non other that the class clown Naruto Uzumaki.

As the bell rang all the students made their way back into the classroom and took their seats. The first thing on their minds were the results of a test that Iruka gave them the day before. Even Naruto had studied for it because he didn't want to be expelled. He had actually made some friends. Choji, Shikamaru, Kiba and Shino were the few guys at the academy that he hangs out with. When they decided not to ditch classes anymore and to fix their grades and their skills with shurikens, Iruka was impressed at their progress and so was everyone else, because the dead-last was not dead last anymore.

"I actually studied for this one…" said Naruto to Shikamaru. " I hope it wasn't all for nothing cuz I tried. I'll get a good grade! Believe it!"

"Bah..please…" Sakura added in a snotty tone. "Like you could ever get anything but an F."

"Oh yeah?! I'll get an A, believe it! You'll see!" Naruto screamed back.

"Alright then…if you're so confident, why don't we make it into a bet?"

"Heh! Alright! If I win YOU will have to go out with me after the classes are over!"

"Okay but if I win YOU can never, ever, EVER, ask me out again!" Sakura shouted back.

"Deal!" Naruto added loudly. "I'll win for sure!" he shouted happily.

At that moment Iruka came into the classroom holding a stack of papers in his hand. As he announced the grades one by one everybody was anxious to see who won the bet. The two were shouting after all, so everybody in class heard them and they had started guessing who will win.

"Next up…Naruto Uzumaki… " Iruka announced " I'm very surprised …A-…" he continued calmly with a smile handing Naruto the test. Naruto's eyes went wide and his mouth slightly opened…" _No way…"_ he thought.

"WHAAATTTT!?" Shouted Sakura .

"HAHAHAHAHAHAH! That means that after class, you're going with me!" Naruto shouted with his signature grin looking at Sakura.

Sakura shrunk in her seat while others laughed at her and the girls made fun of her for having to go on a date with the loser. Sakura wore a grim expression and a tinge of embarrassment on her face. But some of her anger was gone after Naruto lightly tapped her shoulder turning her attention to him. Looking at him she almost blushed as he gave her a gentle and sweet smile that she had never seen before.

"You won't regret it… I promise…" He said quietly.

* * *

After the last bell of the day rang Sakura's stomach did a back flip as she knew what was to come. She sighed as she heard Naruto call out her name. Closing her eyes she reached up with her hands fixing the ribbon in her hair trying to ignore him. Of course, that sure as hell didn't work. Naruto ran up to her grabbing her hand and dragging her away telling her about his favorite place to eat: Ichiraku ramen! He told her about old man Teuchi and his daughter Ayame and how they were one of the first people to care for him and that ramen was the first real meal he ever had.

Sakura was surprised to realize that she was actually very interested in his story, so interested that she had forgotten that he was holding her hand the entire time. However, what she did notice is that his grip on her hand was gentle, like he wasn't trying to force her to go with him, he was simply showing her the way.

He's hand was warm but a little…rough? Directing her gaze to his hand her eyes widened in shock at what she saw. His hand had cuts and scrapes on it and his finger nails were full of little purplish bruises like he had hit his nail really hard on something . There was dried blood around his cuticles and a little part of this pinky nail was broken off revealing the redish flesh under it. " _Ouch…_ " she winced mentally in sympathy.

"Umm…hey…" she finally said interrupting his babbling about the different kinds of ramen she should try.

"Yeah?" he said looking at her with that same gentle smile from before.

"Umm…" she blushed. Turning away she asked: "So uhh…what…happened to your hands?"

"Huh?" he replied turning his confused gaze towards his free hand inspecting it. "Oh that? Well I gotta earn a living ya know… little work here and there…plus I've been training really hard! I mean, if I didn't you wouldn't be here now would ya! Heheheh!"

He flashed one of his toothy grins and before Sakura could add anything else they had arrived at Ichiraku's.

Stopping Sakura said "Um…you know...I've never been here before…"

"WAH?! You've never had Ichiraku ramen before?! That's a serious crime Sakura!" he shouted faking a shocked expression that made Sakura giggle.

He dragged her in, taking a seat and ordering he yelled: "Two bowls of miso with extra barbeque pork! You're gonna love it Sakura trust me! Ramen's the best! Especially with extra pork! "

Sakura giggled again at his enthusiasm. She didn't notice that she was smiling at him until he looked back at her giving her a big foxy grin and a chuckle.

Before she could react Teuchi came back with their ramen "Here you go! Enjoy!"

"Well, duh! You know we will!" Naruto replied smiling at Teuchi earning a laugh from him and Ayame.

As Sakura slowly ate her ramen, opposite to Naruto's breakneck method, she had to admit that it was pretty good. The meat was soft and well cooked, the noodles were perfect and the soup had an amazing taste to it. Hearing loud gulping sounds she turned towards Naruto as he tilted his bowl and finished all the soup. She was surprised as she has just began eating her ramen he had already finished his and now he was ordering another one.

"How many bowls can you put down?" she asked with a laugh.

"Sometimes 6 or 7…depends on how hungry I am!" he replied with a funny smile patting his stomach.

"That's a lot…" she replied surprised

"Not to Choji it isn't! Heheheh!" Naruto said with a laugh

Sakura laughed as Naruto started eating another bowl of ramen. She turned her attention back to her own meal and started eating it enjoying the different flavors and textures.

"Mmmm…" came out of her mouth as she chewed. This drew Naruto's attention back to her.

"Ha! See? I knew you would like it! What did I tell ya?!" he said loudly with his mouth full making his voice sound kind of muffled and funny.

Sakura laughed once more. " _Well…this isn't as bad as I thought. He's different now…like he's not…annoying anymore…he's happy…and I guess he's kind of nice…I guess I shouldn't have judged him…"_ Her face showed a sad expression as she lowered her chopsticks in deep thought. Naruto noticed it.

"Is something wrong Sakura?" he asked swallowing a mouthfull.

"No, everything's fine…I was just thinking…"

Finishing her thoughts and her meal as Naruto finished his fifth bowl, he asked if she wanted another one. She told him she was full and smiled at his chivalry. He paid as they made to leave. Walking down the street Naruto's face perked up as he looked at Sakura.

"Hey, you up for dessert?"

"Sure…where to?" she replied, glad that he had asked her.

"I know just the place! There's this bakery just down the street with those mini cakes! They're really delicious, we can go there if you want."

"I…actually, I always wanted to go there…" Sakura stuttered in surprise.

"Really? Well, who would have thought…you might actually have fun on this date!" Naruto replied sarcastically.

Sakura giggled. " _I already am…"_ That though was accompanied by a light blush.

"Alright then, what're we standing here for?!" Naruto loudly said grabbing Sakura's hand and dragging her away. Sakura laughed at his antics.

Minutes later they were sitting in the bakery slowly eating the cakes spoonful by spoonful. Even Naruto had seemed to have some manners as he was eating slowly as well.

"I'm surprised that you didn't just take the cake and swallowed it whole." Said Sakura joking.

"BAHAHAHAHAH! You want me to choke?!" Naruto laughed.

"Hehehehe…" Sakura laughed as well wiping a small tear from her eye.

"I'm trying to enjoy the taste Sakura." Naruto replied. "After all, I have a killer sweet tooth to satisfy…"

"Yeah, I can see that." Sakura said.

As they were slowly eating they focused more on enjoying the taste of the sweets and the conversation ran out of words. As they ate in silence Sakura glanced at Naruto. It was weird seeing him so calm and quiet and polite. " _I didn't know he could be like this…He's so calm and cute and…wait?...Cute?...hm…I…guess he is…_ " She glanced back at Naruto who was looking down at his plate, not noticing Sakura was sneaking a look at his face checking every detail, every feature. His high, impossibly blonde eyebrows and messy spiky hair. She was tempted to reach and straighten it. His big, mesmerizing ocean blue eyes, his cute but strange whisker marks, his soft pouty lips. She wondered what would it feel like to kiss him. His sun kissed tan skin. She caught a glimpse of his pearly white, perfectly straight teeth when he opened his mouth for another spoonful.

"Sakura, you okay? You're not eating." Naruto asked a little concerned.

"Huh? Oh, I'm fine. Don't worry." Replied Sakura as she was pulled out of her thoughts.

Looking up, her eyes met his and almost getting lost in those pools of blue she quickly looked away feeling her cheeks getting hotter.

After they finished their desserts they slowly began walking back to Sakura's house. Even Sakura wasn't in any hurry to part from the blonde who had a smile on his face the whole time they were walking. The trip back to Sakura's house was silent, the two didn't say a word but would occasionally glance towards each other sharing a smile, Naruto would wink at her earning a blush from the pinkette. Sakura started to realize how much she underestimated him. His kindness, his looks, his charm, his sense of humor…his romantic gestures… Getting lost in her thoughts she didn't realize that they had arrived at her front door.

"Well…here we are…" Naruto said pulling her out of her thoughts.

She couldn't help but notice the disappointment and sadness in the tone of his voice. Feeling a little sad herself she reaches out giving him a kiss on the cheek. Giggling at Naruto's look of utter shock.

"Thanks for today…I actually had fun…" she said softly.

"Heh…I told ya you wouldn't regret it…" Naruto replied with a sweet gentle smile winking at her again.

As they said their goodbyes Naruto began walking home as Sakura entered her house. Her mother, pulling her face out of a book she was reading looked at her with concern.

"Sakura, honey where have you been? Your classes ended a while ago, I got a bit worried…"

"I'm ok mom it's just…I was on a date…" Sakura replied looking at her feet as she sat on the couch next to her mom.

"Sasuke finally said yes to a date?"

"Umm…It…wasn't Sasuke…" Sakura replied quietly.

Her mother looked at her before raising an eyebrow. "It wasn't that Naruto guy you always call annoying, was it?"

"Yeah…" Sakura replied even quieter still looking at the ground.

"Oh it wasn't that bad, was it?" Her mother asked.

Sakura meet her moms eyes. "No…actually it was really nice…I shouldn't have judged him…I teased him, picked on him, I hit him, I insulted him, called him a freak, a jerk and every other name you could use but he still smiled at me…he was still nice to me…I want to change that but…if I start being friends with Naruto others will make fun of me…but I… I don't know what to do…mom?"

Her mother put her hand on her chin and after a bit of thinking she said "Well, you don't have to be friends with him in class just don't hit him or tease him anymore, alright dear?"

"Yes mom."

* * *

The next morning Sakura walked to the academy while her stomach did back flips, she was anxious to hear what her friends will say about her going on a date with the loser. What will she tell them? She didn't want to embarrass herself but she didn't want to embarrass Naruto either. He was so nice yesterday. It just wouldn't be fair…

"Good morning, Sakura" said Ino with a snotty tone. "How'd your date go? Was it as good as Naruto says it was? He said you told him you had fun? Hmm?"

Sakura gulped. " _Just tell her…"_ It…I actually did have fun… he was very nice."

"What?! No way! Are you serious forehead?!" Ino said loudly. Loud enough for other girls to hear. They all joined the conversation.

"You mean he wasn't as annoying as he is in class?"

"He took you for ramen, right? Hahah that's so not romantic!"

"Did he get you a gift or something?"

"Of course he didn't, stupid! He doesn't have enough money!"

"Yeah I wonder what his house looks like?"

"Does he even have one?"

"Wait, where does he live anyway?"

"Where does who live?" Iruka's voice came forward stopping all the girls babbling.

"Hey sensei, does Naruto have a house?" asked one of the girls.

"Where does he live? Is he still at the orphanage?"

"Orphanage?!"

"Oh right, he doesn't have parents…"

"Does he have a caretaker or something?"

"No" Iruka stopped the babbling once again " He lives in an apartment, by himself…" He answered with a hint of sadness in his voice.

"How does he get money?" Ino asked.

"He does jobs around the village..." Sakura said looking down.

" Well that explains his hands! Hahahah! He needs a manicure!" The girls laughed at Ami's remark.

"That's enough." Said Iruka "Go into the classroom and take your seats! No further discussion."

"Huh?" the girls all looked at their Sensei, confused by the sudden change in the tone of his voice.

"Why do you make fun of him being a hard-worker?" Sakura said suddenly and the girls' eyes went wide. "leave him alone… you've got your mom and dad to work for you…he doesn't…" She looked down at her feet with sadness.

"Right…sorry…that was wrong…" the girls apologized quietly not wanting anyone else to hear that they feel bad for Naruto.

* * *

As the lessons dragged on for the first time Sakura didn't pay attention to her teacher, all she could think about was her blonde classmate who was sitting next to her with his gaze in a book trying to read a very long complicated word. He was making a confused face which made her smile. " _idiot…_ "

"Ahem!" a caugh drew her back to the lesson.

"Sakura…" Iruka said in a serious tone "If you want to keep getting good grades on your tests I suggest you pay attention."

"Give her a break sensei…" Naruto interrupted "This stuff is boring…"

"But didn't you just start fixing your grades? You're not telling me you cheated on the test are you?"

"I didn't I swear!" Naruto said defensively.

"Then tell me the definition of history" Iruka said crossing his arms.

"Uhhh…History is…" Naruto tried to remember the question… then he grinned "A science about the dead that bores the living!"

Iruka's mouth fell open while the students burst out into a laughing fit.

Iruka sighed "That…is sort of a clever answer, but an incorrect one at that."

"But you said it, it's clever!" Naruto smiled "And it's true too, right Sakura?" He smiled at Sakura who was wiping a tear from her eye.

Maybe going out with him again wouldn't be so bad after all…

Which is what happened. They enjoyed each others company again, laughing and eating ice cream. Hours later they were in front of Sakura's house.

" _I guess my mom was right…"_ Sakura thought smiling. "Thanks again Naruto…" She said leaning in and giving him a gentle kiss on the cheek.

His eyes went wide and he blushed to match the color of Sakura's dress. Flashing his signature toothy grin he looked at her and chuckled. "Heheh…"

"I told ya you wouldn't regret it…"


End file.
